It’s no surprise that Rich Pugh, co-owner of Johnny Rad’s (2108 Eastern Ave., 443-759-6464), used to manage a skate shop. The pizzeria/tavern on the upper edge of Fells Point has skateboards on its walls, skate videos on TV, wheels acting as doorknobs, and a steady soundtrack of punk blaring from the speakers. But take a quick look at the menu, and you realize it’s all about the pizza. The restaurant offers 12 specialty pizzas, along with make-your-own options with toppings like bell peppers, prosciutto, and vegetarian meats.

When McCabe’s suddenly closed in 2009, it looked like another longtime Baltimore tavern had given up the ghost. But, surprise, the Hampden neighborhood bar/restaurant came back to life in April with new owners, one of whom is the chef.

Partners Dan McIntosh and Patrick Ito, who heads the kitchen, haven’t changed the interior much. The dining room off the bar area looks scrubbed for company but essentially has the characteristic brick walls, dark wood, and forest-green color scheme of years past. Paper napkins attest to its pub setting.

The days of eating a puny hot dog with just a squirt of mustard seem to have disappeared, replaced by fat, fancy frankfurters with all manner of condiments and garnishes. Chili Man Weiners in Towson got things started a couple of years ago, but, recently, dog places have been popping up all over Baltimore: Stuggy’s Old Fashioned Hot Dogs & Sausages in Fells Point, The Haute Dog Carte on Falls Road, and The Wild Dog mobile wagon in Hunt Valley.

Aja Cage, the pastry chef at Salt, remembers her “aha” moment with ice cream. Her boss at the time, at an upscale Pittsburgh restaurant, asked her to check on some cilantro ice cream. “I thought, ‘Wow. You can make ice cream with cilantro?’ And it was a dessert.”

Summer fun is in full swing! Boating, picnics, pool parties—all great activities, but none of them ideal places for glass bottles of wine. Fortunately, the producers of good wine have set aside their bias against alternative packaging.At the forefront of this movement are folks interested in organic farming who recognize the inefficiency of glass. Glass is heavy, after all, and requires lots of fuel to move it around, so its carbon footprint is formidable.

Pete’s Grille in Waverly (3130 Greenmount Ave., 410-467-7698) does breakfast, not brunch; so don’t go there looking for mimosas, goat cheese and spinach quiche, or crêpes. What you will find are good old-fashioned breakfast classics—coffee, eggs, pancakes, waffles, sausage, bacon, and hash browns—prepared simply and deliciously. We tucked into a stack of fluffy, chocolate-chip pancakes ($5.75) and a blueberry short stack ($5.75) during a recent visit. Both were loaded with our filling of choice and so absorbent we needed to reapply syrup and butter several times throughout our meal.

It's a Sunday night up on the second floor at Germano's Trattoria, a Little Italy stalwart strung along the neighborhood's main drag. The pumpkin-colored walls are hung with vintage Art Nouveau posters, but all eyes are upon vocalist Sophie Louise Roland, a statuesque blonde in a diaphanous maroon dress.

The evening's entertainment, she says, is all about "sensuality." Patrons now have all the more reason to look up from their plates of braised beef shanks and red beet ravioli. "No one is going to die tonight," she adds with a grin.